A Few Experts on Pinterest

January 18, 2018/

If you’re a DIY kind of a person, like myself, then you’ve probably already discovered what a gold mine Pinterest is for gaining inspiration, learning new skills, and even growing the skills you already have. The beauty of it is that there is this amazing format for saving all kinds of things that interest or inspire you in a place that doesn’t create extra work for you, doesn’t take up space on a shelf or in a bin, and you can sort all of this information into as many easy-to-search categories as you would like.

When I was growing up, I remember my mother having a basket of magazines that she would be reading or have read. She’d dog-ear the pages and articles that interested her, and when she’d get some time, she’d pull out those inspirational pages and put them into a folder or a binder, she’d clip the recipes and put them into her cook book, and the rest of the magazine would head to the trash. I also remember her scouring one of the folders, looking for something in particular, only to have those articles spill onto the floor, or to have my sister and I go digging through them and completely messing up any kind of organization she had going on.

My mom IS a DIYer, and she is a huge fan of Pinterest and how much easier it is to find things that she’s interested in. She and I, along with plenty of my friends and family members have seen the value that has come from being able to “meet” different experts online and learn from them. We’ve seen the benefit of the access to a wealth of knowledge that helps us to learn a new skill or being able to get better at all of these things we’ve dabbled in… for free. Of course, there’s always somebody selling something out there, but having options, reviews, and being able to gain some insight into the background of any given person can help us to determine if it’s worth the money to invest into the tools, lessons, or products that somebody may be selling.

I thought I’d share with you today, some of my favorite boards from different people who could qualify as an expert in a given subject. Their blogs are interesting, and I it’s neat to be able to see all of the different pins that are out there that others like and are sharing. A true expert knows that they don’t know everything about their field of expertise. They recognize that there are always things to learn and room for improvement, and in my opinion, a lot of their Pinterest boards that delve into their area of expertise are the most useful, because they are always looking for more inspiration, more ideas, and looking to see if they can indeed, do better.

Souly Rested first started to really expand on what they write about making maple syrup this past year, and I’ve got to say, she’s got such a wealth of information on her site that even though she’s still relatively new to making maple syrup, she’s spent a lot of time and energy soaking up every piece of knowledge she can from anyone and everyone about how to be great at it. She’s working on writing a book… well, she’s written a book all about backyard maple syrup, but it won’t go to press for awhile yet. Unfortunately technical difficulties have gotten the upper hand for now, so now she’s just digging in deeper and trying to truly become the best expert she can be on making maple syrup in your back yard. You can find her Pinterest page here, her blog here, and her Facebook page here.

Apron Strings & Other Things writes about a variety of things, but she’s been homeschooling for a long time, so she’s got a ton of useful information on her site. Having a lot of kids means that over the years you search out different activities for the kids as you go… after all, doing the same science experiments year after year can get a little old, and not only that, but every child learns a little differently. Sometimes as homeschoolers it can be difficult to connect with other people who are going through the same things you are, or who have been where you are now. It’s wonderful to be able to find “mentors” thanks to the internet, and it’s so amazing to be able to glean ideas from all of the thousands of people out there homeschooling their children. Don’t forget to check out her Pinterest page, the blog, and her Facebook page!

Homeschooling doesn’t require a classroom, but we do appreciate having a dedicated space for working and storing our resources.

Day to Day Adventures has an amazing rag rug tutorial that I’ve been itching to try. I’ve been wanting to make my own rag rug for at least 6 years now, but it just hasn’t been in the cards yet. Someday I will, and when I do, I know I’ll turn to Kim for answers! I’ve read some of her work on making rag rugs and it has me even more excited than ever to give it a try. You can follow along with Kim on Pinterest here, on her blog, or on her Facebook page.

I started making a braid for a rag rug several years back, but realized I didn’t have nearly enough fabric for the job… maybe someday I’ll finish it!

Melissa K. Norris has got to be one of my favorite homesteading bloggers out there (along with Oak Hill Homestead), because she covers things from a slightly different angle. Melissa’s goal is to encourage people to get back to our pioneering roots. She’s a great resource for finding ways to be frugal and work with what you have. She’s great for reminding us to be resourceful, and her podcasts are always so informative. Check out Melissa’s Pinterest page here, follow her Facebook page here, or check out her site here.

And when I’m trying to find an idea for a building project, I turn to Ana White. She makes all kinds of woodworking plans and puts them online…many for free. If you like farmhouse or rustic looking furniture, she’s a great person to turn to. You can follow Ana on her site, Facebook, or Pinterest.

The table leg design was inspired by a design on Ana’s website. We had to make adjustments to make it work for us (height of the legs, adding the bull-nose to the corners…

Oh, and though I still feel really weird considering myself an expert at anything, sewing is kind of my thing. You can follow along with my blog by subscribing in the sidebar to make sure you don’t miss any of our sewing posts, tag along on Facebook, or follow on Pinterest. I have multiple sewing-related Pinterest boards that you’ll probably love if you like sewing or are interested in learning more about sewing. There’s my Sewing board, my Quilts board, the Alterations/clothing board, and one just for sewing room organization… a board I drew at least a little bit of inspiration from as I worked on my sewing room makeover!

She also made a pincushion for strapping onto the machine and this mat to go under my machine. It has little pockets for storing my snips and seam ripper.

I’d really like to hear from you… who are some of your favorite people to follow on Pinterest? What have they inspired you to do? Share a link in the comments!

What a great list! I have a love/hate relationship with Pinterest because it seems like every time I find something to try with my kids, we don’t have the supplies on hand, thus we don’t do them. That being said, I do really appreciate many of the people you mentioned but tend to go to their blogs instead of Pinterest. Ana White has been the inspiration for many a wood-working project over the years at our house.

I completely understand! I remember when I first started using it and people would label posts things like “using only things from your kitchen” and it would be all things I DIDN’t have in my kitchen. But over time, I’ve kind of accumulated some of those things, so it gets a little easier with time. Sometimes doing really specific searches, listing things you DO have on hand can make it easier to find what you need. And I’ll agree that for a lot of these folks, I go straight to their websites and read the latest. But I like seeing my Pinterest feed filled with things that actually pertain to what I do in my day to day life. Or when I am trying to get ideas for decorating my room, it will start to understand my style a little bit, and I can sort of get a better picture of what it is I like.

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